Annette Cluff and her husband founded the private Varnett Public School in 1984 to give their preschool son a better education.

Today, Varnett is a publicly funded charter school district with three campuses, 1,700 students and 300 or 400 more kids on a waiting list, Cluff said.

Cluff earned $252,000 last school year as Varnett's superintendent and a campus director, Texas Education Agency records show, making her the state's top-paid charter school administrator.

Her husband, Alsie Cluff Jr., made $166,800 as operations manager. Their son, Alsie Cluff III, made $68,900 as assistant operations manager. And daughter Melissa Cluff earned $48,000 as assistant director of a prekindergarten program. Their daughter-in-law also used to work for Varnett.

Cluff defended the salaries. "My people have to wear multiple hats," she said. Unlike traditional school districts, she said, "We don't have the big administration building with lots of staff."

Plus, Cluff said, her schools have delivered results. The district received the state's top academic rating of "exemplary" this year, as did two of the three campuses. (The other was rated "recognized," the next-highest rating.) And one campus received the coveted National Blue Ribbon School award this year.

"If you look at our achievement, we work our butts off," she said.

The Cluffs also financially benefit from the schools in other ways.

Varnett has paid more than $1.5 million to companies owned by Annette and Alsie Cluff Jr., IRS records show. In 2008-09, the charter district paid $822,000 for bus services to the Texas School Bus Co., which the Cluffs own. Varnett paid an additional $786,400 to rent buildings from the Varnett Academy Inc., also owned by the Cluffs.

Such arrangements are legal for charter schools and traditional public schools, as long as bidding requirements are met and those who benefit directly do not vote on the contracts.

Cluff said she had to form a separate bus company because Varnett's insurance carrier would not allow the school to own buses. And when Varnett converted from a private school to a public charter, the charter agreement that the state approved allowed that practice, she said.

An IRS form from 2008-09 required for nonprofits, shows Cluff's salary as $372,961 - considerably higher than what was reported to TEA. Asked about the discrepancy, Cluff said she could not comment until she reviewed the IRS form.